Upholstered cushions and equipment for upholstering the same



Jan. 27, 1959 R M. LE BARRE 2,870,824 UPHOLSTERED CUSHIONS AND EQUIPMENT FOR UPHOLSTERING THE SAME Filed May 20, 1957 4 Shets-Sheet 1 FIG- /7 INVENTOR. ROBERT M LE BARRE ATTO Jam 1959 R. M. LE BARRE 2,870,824

UPHOLSTERED CUSHIONS AND EQUIPMENT FOR UPHOLSTERING THE SAME 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 20, 1957 F I G l I- JNVENTOR.

48 ROBERT LE BARRE BY J WP ATTRNEYS Jan. 27, 1959 R. M. LE BARRE 2,870,324

, UPHOLSTERED CUSHIONS AND EQUIPMENT FOR UPHOLSTERING THE SAME Filed May 20, 1957 v 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN VEN TOR.

ATT RN EYS LE BARRE Jan. 27, 1959 R. M. 2,870,824

UPHOLSTERED CUSHIONS AND EQUIPMENT FOR UPHOLSTERING THE SAME 4 Sheets-$heet -4 Filed May 2O, 1957 FIG. l8-

FIG. I7-

FIG. 19.

FIG. 20.

INVENTORJ LE BAR E ROBERT M.

ATT'O N EYS I United States Patent UPHOLSTERED 'CUSI-HONS AND EQUIPMENT FOR 5 UPHOLSTERING THE SAME Robert M. Le Barre, Rochester, Mich. Application May 20, 1957, Serial No. 660,272

6 Claims. (Cl. 155-182) 2,870,824 Patented Jan. 27, 1959 ice 1 accordance with one embodiment of the invention, the

The present invention relates to improvements in a covered or upholstered cushion and like structure and equipment for upholste'ring the same, whereby the covering or upholstering material, usually as made up in open ended casing or sheath form, is properly positioned easily and quickly with its edges in registered alignment with edge margins of the cushion bpdy, and is thereafter held securely against displacement from this position.

v It will be. evident that the principles of the invention are also applicable in the covering of mattresses, padded furniture, and other cushion-like structures. Further, although the invention is primarily illustrated and described. herein in connection with the covering of bodies molded of foam rubber, polyurethane and like compositions, it is also applicable in the upholsterihg of inner spring type cushions, mattresses, etc. For brevity, the upholstered unit will, however, be referred to only as a cushion body.

Practically everyone has witnessed the unsightliness" and experienced the annoyance occasioned by the tendenby of upholstery, upholstery covers, cushion slip covers, 35

and the like, particularly of the Welt'ed searn type, to shift relative to a cushion or like body to which they are applied, causing the welting thereof to depart from its intended aligned position along side edge and/orcorner margins of the cushion body. The present invention af fords simple, inexpensive and readily applied means for correcting this difhculty, enabling an operator to quickly orient the cover material by feel on the cushion body, and thereafter maintain the welts in proper position along the, margins in question, resisting their shift under any usually encountered type of stress.

It is an object of the invention to provide upholstery locating and holding means as described, in the form of an improved attaching strip which may be applied, as by a suitable adhesive, to a cushion body to serve as an anchor for the upholstering cover, the strip having provision to assist an operator. in applying the cover by manual feel, so that the cover is accurately located and assembled on the cushion body, with its marginal welts in proper position. More particularly, the locating provisions referred to above may tak'e the form of welting on the strip itself, or other formation readily detected by feel.

A further object is to provide such a welt locating and securing strip which is constituted of a suitable fabric and itself has one or more welts along which the covering material may be securely stitched and anchored, once the cover is in the desired alignment on the cushion body.

Yet another object is to provide a locating and securing strip of this type, permitting the application of the upholste ry cover with ease and speed, but without causing any visually perceptive projectionor protuberance in a surface exposed to view.

In accordance with certain of the various embodiments of the invention the locating and securing strip may be secured to a foam rubber or equivalent cushion body by an adhesive applied to the surface of the body. In other forms, impmvea snap fastener means are applied to the thickness of the fabric material in this view being considerably exaggerated for clarity, as itis in other views;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view in verticalsection along line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of the welted securing strip in a hat condition;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view similar to Fig. 1, showing a modified adaptation of the invention;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section on line 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view, partially broken away and in vertical section, showing a further modification of the invention, as well as the method of inserting a. cushion body in a cover with the assistance of an assembling sleeve;

Figs. 7 and 8 are, respectively, fragmentary views in perspective of further modified adaptations of, the principle of Fig. 6;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary perspective view of a still further form;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary perspectiveview of yet another modification employing snap fasteners as the cover securing means;

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary vertical section-on line 11-11 of Fig. 10;

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary plan view of a. cushion body having snap fastener securing type means applied thereto in another modified way;

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary section on line 13-13 of Fig, 12;

Fig. 14 is a fragmentary perspective view, partially broken away, of an upholstering or covering member having a snap fastener strip applied thereto forcoaction; with the cushion snap fastener means of Figs. 12 and 1.3;

Fig. 15 is a perspective view illustrating cover-securing strip means equipped with slide fastener provisions to secure a cover;

Fig. 16 is a fragmentary view in vertical section on line 16-16 of Fig. 15;

Fig. 17 is a fragmentary plan. view of a modified type] of slide fastener type securing strip for the purpose;

Fig, 18 is .a fragmentary plan view of yet another. slide, fastener form; I

Fig; 19 is afragmentary view in enlarged scale along line 1951 9 of Fig. 18; and a Fig. 20 is a fragmentary side elevational View, partially broken away, showing the application of theprim ciple of the invention, as embodied in. any of the. alternative forms mentioned above, to an. inner spring type cushion or like padded body.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, the reference numeral. 10 generally designates a conventional cushion, pad or the like of rectangular outline, which is fabricated in) its entirety of foam rubber, polyurethane foam or similar.

plastic composition. The reference numeral 11 generally designates a fabric securing strip having an outwardly projecting, rounded welt 12 fdrmed thereon in any con ventional way. The strip 11 may be of any desired,

suitably sturdy fabric or are material, resistaptIto stretch.

in nature. in width may vary as desiied, from, a minimum, say 1'', to a width atheism to enable its parallel longitudinal edges 13 to be overlapped substantially on the upper and lower surfaces of the cushion body 10.

In this form the welt 12 is located on the longitudi-. nal center line of the strip 11, being coextensive in length therewith. The welted strip 11, as shown in Fig. 1, is formed in a U-shaped outline, to encase the rear and side walls of the cushion body 1%, leaving the front wall free and exposed. Strip 11 may, if desired, be stitched up in this outline prior to application to the cushion body, or it may be progressively wound about the cushion wall surfaces.

The strip is preferably secured to the body by a layer 14of a suitable adhesive, as ,of the latex type, and it is applied over an adequate area, either on the cushion 1GB or on'the inner side of the strip 11, to enable a firm, displacement resistant union, without possibility of dislodging the strip in a way which might produce a visible protuberance, if not actually defeating the main purpose of the invention as described above.

With the locating and securing strip thus applied, the upholstery cover or like material, usually in the form of an open-ended sheath 15 of which only a fragment is shown in Fig. l, is slipped onto the forward strip-free end of the cushion body 10, so as to fully encase the latter, with the welt margins 16 of the cover properly located in reference to edge margins on body 10. The welting 12 of strip 11 provides a means for performing this operation easily and quickly, being distinctly felt by the operator sliding his hand along the same from the outside of the cover sheath 15; and the cover, once properly located, is then anchored to the strip by stitching at 12 along the welt 12. There is no visible projection at the sole exposed wall of the cushion, other than the welts of its cover 15.

Needless to say, the exact three sided type of strip 11 depicted in Fig. 1 may be departed from, if desired, i. e., the strip may be of less width, it may be applied to less than three cushion walls, its welt 12 may be omitted from one or more sides, or may be differently positioned,

etc.

The modified embodiment of the invention shown in Fig. 4 differs only from that of Figs. 1-3 in regard to the number and location of the welts thereon; accordingly corresponding reference numerals designate corresponding parts. Here, the locating and securing strip 17 is provided with two parallel welts 18, each located in laterally inwardly spaced parallel relation to one of the side edges 19 of the strip. Their spacing from one another equals the wall height of the cushion body 11.

The strip 17 is applied and secured to the cushion 10 in the same way as the form of Figs. l-3, with the welts 18 running along the upper and lower edge margins of cushion body 10. As applied, the operator can readily and quickly locate the outer cover 20 on the pad and the cover, which in this case may itself possess or be free of welts, is then stitched at 18' to the strip 17 along the welts 18 of the latter. Considerations referred to in coni nection with Figs. l-3 regarding the extent of the cover,

its welts,.etc., also apply to the embodiment of Figs. 4

and 5.

Referring now to Fig. 6, a further alternative form is shown in which parallel strips 21 of a latex type or other suitable adhesive are applied along the inner surface of a fabric locating and securing strip 22, which strip is then stitched along a wall of the upholstery cover 23. The width of the strip 22 shown in Fig. 6 is sutficient to extend around the upper and lower edge margins of a cushion body 24. In this instance the strip 22 may provide welts 25, similar to the welting of Figs. 4 and 5, to which the cover 23 may be anchored, as by lines of stitching 26.

Fig. 6 also illustrates a typical way of applying the strip bearing cover 23 to the cushion body 24. The latter is inserted in a sheet metal sleeve of rectangular cross section, being compressed as thus inserted. The sleeve 27 is then slipped into the cover from an open sheath end thereof, so as to properly shape the latter, and the cushion body is then pushed forwardly against the adhesive coated strip 22. So engaged, it is adhered to the securing strip and its displacement relative to the cushion body 24 is thereafter prevented. Obviously, the adhesive 21 may be applied over the full area of the fabric strip, or less, and by ways other than stripping.

Fig. 7 shows a modified form of the adaptation of Fig. 6, in which a plain, unwelted fabric locating and securing strip 30, also of width sufficient to overlap the top and bottom of a cushion body, is provided. The strip 30 carries one or more adhesive stripes 31, or other type coating, on its inner surface for adhered securementto the cushion body, and the upholstery or like outer cover 32, itself provided with an edge welt 33, is stitched at 34 along the margin of the fabric strip 30, on either side of the welt 33 of the cover.

Fig. 8 shows a further modification identical to the forms of Figs. 6 and 7, hence identified by corresponding numerals, except that a fabric, adhesive bearing securing strip 36 of lesser width is applied along the horizontal center of line of the cover 32, being secured thereto by stitching 37. Strip 36 adheres to the cushion body to anchor the welting 33.

Referring now to Fig. 9 still another modified form of the same general type is represented. Here, an elongated fabric securing strip 39 is applied, as by adhesive, along a single edge margin of a cushion body 40, substantially overlapping adjacent surfaces. A cover 41 having a Welt 42 is secured to the strip 39 by stitching 43.

Figs. 1 through 9 depict forms of the invention in which a fabric locating and securing strip, welted or otherwise,

is adhesively bonded to a cushion body. Referring now to Figs. 10 and 11, it is possible as another general class of modified embodiments to employ snap-fasteners for the anchoring of an upholstery cover with its welts properly located relative to the cushion.

The reference numeral 45 designates a conventional snap fastener element, preferably the female element; and there are a plurality of such fastener elements applied to a cushion body 46 in space alignment adjacent and along an edge margin thereof. Each element 45 is appropriately secured to a length 47 of rubber band material of round cross section and the opposite end of this band is appropriately secured to a further headed element 48 on the opposite surface of the body 46. Head element 48 may, if desired, be a snap fastener element identical with the element 45.

In the production of the prepared cushion according to- Figs. 10 and 11, the resilient bands 47, with anchoring ele-. ments 45, 48 at their opposite ends, are positioned transversely of a cushion forming mold (not shown), the bands 47 being under slight tension. Upon pouring of the foam composition constituting the body 46 into the mold, the bands are integrally bonded and molded therein; and when the cushion is removed from the mold they contract to draw the elements 45, 48 into body 46 somewhat, simulating the effect of tufting.

An upholstery cover having male snap fastener elements suitably secured thereon for engagement with the elements 45, 48 when applied (for example in the general way shown in Fig. 14) is then slipped on the body 46 and the male and female snap fasteners engaged.

Figs. 12, 13 and 14- illustrate another snap fastener type of cover anchoring device. In this form, an elongated strip 50 having female snap fastener elements 51 clinched thereto in longitudinal spaced relation along its length is employed.

d 53 carrying a series of male snap fastener elements 55. These are engaged with the cushion body elements 51 when the cover is applied, and the welting 56 of the latter is properly held in place.

If desired, the strip 53 may have a welt formation thereon, as in other modifications.

Referring now to Figs. 15 and 16, yet another class of modification of the principles of Figs. 1 through 9 and Figs. 10 through 14 appears. In this type, a fabric securing strip 58 carries opposed parallel slide fastener tapes or'strips 59, 59 of known sort, the tapes being over-lapped on one another and secured to the strip 58 by stitching 60. Strip 58 is in turn adhered to one or more wall surfaces of cushion body 62.

The locking elements or lugs 61 of the tapes face the top and bottom of the cushion body, and coacting welted cover or upholstery material. 63 is equipped with zipper fastener tapes on its inner surface. The cover material may be made as a single unit having fastener tapes 64 stitched to its inner side to mate with the elements 61 of the securing tapes 59, 559 when applied. Alternatively, two coacting cover sections may each carry a marginal zipper tape toengage one of the tapes 59, 59.

Fig. 17 shows a further modification of the slide fastener principle, in which a special type of slide fastener element Here, a medial anchor tape or strip 66, secured to the cushion body by adhesive or otherwise, is

provided with substantially spaced slide fastener lock lugs or elements 67, uniformly oriented thereon, and the respective facing edges of two upholstery or cover sections are also equipped With slide fastener tapes 69, whose lugs 70 alternate longitudinally in mating with the coacting lock members 67 of the cushion-carried securing tape 66. It is evident that as a further modification the cover could be a single unit, with opposed fastener tapes stitched along a wall panel.

Fig. 18 illustrates yet a further modified slide fastener type in which a special slide fastener element 72 mounted on a tape 73 and appropriately applied to a cushion body has transversely aligned, uniformly oriented locking lugs or elements 75 projecting from its opposite sides. The slide element 72 is flexible and may be suitably clinched, adhered (as in the previous forms or otherwise mounted to the tape 73, and slide fastener lock elements on the opposed fabric cover sections 76, or on a single cover unit interlock with the center elements 75.

In the embodiments of Figs. -19, the zipper tapes may be applied to securing strips which are either provided with locating Welt formations, or not, as in Figs.

Fig. 20 of the drawings depicts, in a general way, an application of the invention, in any of the above described alternative embodiments thereof, to an inner spring type of cushion 7S. Appropriately tied coil springs 7Q of this cushion are'covered with a suitable padding 80, and an external casing Sll is applied and clinched to the bottom frame 82, or otherwise secured in any conventional fashion. Indeed, the cushion unit may be of any desired spring type, as distinguished from a molded cushion body, as in the preceding figures.

Thereference numeral 83 designates a securing strip mounted to the padding 86, as by adhesive, and upholstering material may be applied to this strip in accordance with any of the variousrnodified arrangements hereinabove described. t

The drawings and the foregoing specification constitute a description of the improved sewed welt for cushions in such full, clear, concise and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, the scope of which is indicated by the appended claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

l. Cushion structure comprising a cushion having a longitudinally extending edge margin, and means on said cushion for the releasable fitting and securement thereto of a sheath-like cover, said cover having longitudinal edge portions disposed adjacent one another and paralleling said cushion edge mar-gin when so fitted, said means comprising at least one elongated member permanently secured to said cushion to extend parallel to said edge margin thereof, said last named member having means for releasable holding engagement on at least one of its opposite transverse sides with one of said edge portions of said cover, thereby to hold said cover substantially anchored in both transverse directions relative to said cushion edge margin.

2. Cushion structure in accordance with claim 1, in which said elongated member is a slide fastener device having elements releasably mating with and resisting transverse shift of slide fastener elements on said one of said cover edge portions.

3. Cushion structure comprising a cushion having vertically spaced and longitudinally extending edge margins, and means on said cushion for the releasable fitting and securement thereto of a cover of box-like outline, said cover having longitudinal edge portions disposed adjacent one another and between and paralleling said relative to said cushion edge margins.

4. Upholstered cushion structure comprising a cushion having a longitudinally extendingedge margin, a sheathlike cover having a longitudinal edge and. formed to encase and snugly conform to all surfaces of said cushion when fitted to the latter, with said cover edge in predetermined parallel relation to said edge margin of the cushion, and means for the removable securernent of said cover to said cushion, as thus fitted, with said cover edge anchored in predetermined fixed and parallel re1ation to said cushion edge margin, said means comprising an elongated element permanently secured to said cushion to extend longitudinally of said edge margin thereof and at least one further elongated element secured on said cover in parallel relation to said edge of the latter, said respective cushion and cover elements having releasable holding engagement with one another to anchor said cover against substantial shift of said edge in either transverse direction relative to said cushion edge margm.

5. Upholstered cushion structure comprising a cushion having vertically spaced, longitudinally extending edge margins, a box-like cover having longitudinal edges and formed to encase and snugly conform to all surfaces of said cushion when fitted to the latter, with said cover edge in predetermined parallel relation to said respective edge margins of the cushion, and means for the removable securement of said cover to said cushion, as thus fitted, with said cover edges anchored in predetermined fixed and parallel relation to and along said cushion edge margins, said means comprising an elongated slide fastener device permanently secured to said cushion to extend longitudinally of said edge margins thereof and further elongated slide fastener elements secured on said in predetermined parallel relation to said respective edge margins of the cushion, and means for the removable securement of said cover to said cushion, as thus fitted, with said welt formations anchored in predetermined fixed and parallel relation to and along said cushion edge margins, said means comprising an elongated slide fastener device permanently secured to said cushion to extend longitudinally of and between said edge margins thereof and further elongated slide fastener elements secured on said cover member in parallel relation to said respective edges of the latter, at least one of said cover fastener elements having releasable holding engagement 5 with said device to anchor said cover against substantial shift to said cover welt formations in either transverse direction relative to said cushion edge margins.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,178,885 Bufl et al. Nov. 7, 1939 2,326,441 Cunningham Aug. 10, 1943 2,440,891 Bockhold May 4, 1948 2,630,587 Brown Mar. 10, 1953 2,831,534 Thaden Apr. 22, 1958 

